I've decided to make it part of the routine to watch a Cardrunner video before I play a session, since I've paid $129 for the privilidge I think I should try to get value out of it. So I watched Green Plastic play some $100 NL 6-max. The video was only 19 mins and didn't really contain anything interesting. He re-raised a fish with KJo in position once and folded when the fish led into him for pot on a mono-board. Pretty standard. They can't all be good of course.
Didn't see any good $100 tables when I logged on for a wuick session so I sat down at some $40 tables instead. They seemed juicy. Actually, they were pretty juicy. I opened 3 Hold'em and one PLO8 tables, all 5-max and all $40. In the HH's the numbers used will be in SEK since the conversion gets complicated with these numbers.
Half an hour later the PLO8 table was broken, with me sitting with a 4x buyin stack and another guy with a 2.5x buyin stack sitting out. I've often said that I feel like I still haven't gotten the hang on PLO8 but these opponents were pretty soft. Basically they would play close to any 4, and chase half the pot then fold to a river bet. I'll post the two hands that broke the table:
Hand #1
I've been playing TAG and punding the later streets forcing them to fold a lot. They're of the loose/passive type who like to check or bet small to see a showdown so I'm guessing they're annoyed with my "over aggressive" behaviour.
I'm UTG with 2357 double suited. In my opinion, this is a marginal hand full ring but a monster shorthanded. In full ring games it's horrible to make a non-nut two-way hand since you'll often be up against the nuts one way, but at a 5-handed table the nuts is out much more rarely so a hand like this has some reallly good scoop potential where a 23 low and 7 high flush can easily get all the loot.
So I raise to 6 (this is like $1) UTG with my
[3h][5h][7d]. One guy is sitting out, but Button and SB both call so pot is 20.
Flop comes
[4d][6s] giving me a 7-high flush draw, wrap and 3:d nut low draw. Ie: a monster.
SB checks, I bet 14 and both call. I started with ~300 and they have about the same, so we're semi-deep at ~150bb.
Turn is the
giving me the nut low with some counterfeit protection and even more straight outs. Checked to me again by SB and I fire 54, building the pot enough to be all-in by the river but not quite the max (pot was ~62). Both call again.
River is the
which gives me nut/nut. Sb now flat pushes into me. I have him covered by like 15sek but decide to just flat call to entice the guy behind me to overcall, not that those last $3 will make much difference but who knows, it might swing him. He folds though.
SB shows
[2c][9d][Ts] and was crushing me on the flop (70/30), behind on the turn (35/60) and obviously dead on the river. I think he played it horribly by being passive all the way and then putting his whole stack in on the turn and river when the board turned so bad for him. If I were him I would have played it fast on the flop, hoping to get the stack in, and then given up on the turn if faced with a real bet. Putting in >100bb on the river with no low and a pair of Aces with a bad kicker where there is a made low and straight out isn't exactly the smartest move in a split pot game. I picked up about 170bb minus rake there.
Hand #2
This time against the guy who folded on the turn in the last hand. He has ~240 and I of course have him easily covered. Two players are sitting otu so we're in effect 3-handed.
I'm in the SB with
[6h][7s][Th], button folds and I complete. Not a premium hand by any means but it is double suited, contains an ace, has some straight potential and some emergency low potential with the A67 combo. Villain checks in the BB.
Flop comes
[9d][3h] giving me a sneaky double gutshot (both to the nuts), crap lowdraw and two backdoor flush draws.
I lead out for pot which is 4 obviously. Villain miniraises me.
Ok, I'm not going to fold this hand but I don't want to escalate my semi-promising but still marginal hand out of position against a full stack+ who is probably sick of me and willing to make a stand. So I call to see a turn.
Turn is a beautiful
giving me the nut straight AND the nut flush re-draw, as well as making me a crap A3568 low which may or may not be good. Still, I find these guys tend to play their highs faster than their lows so hopefully he's going high.
I check, he makes a lame bet of 10 into the 20 pot, and I promptly check/raise max to 50. He calls without hesitation (as I said, they probably have me pegged as over aggressive). River is the
changing nothing and I bet full pot 120sek. He quickly calls and mucks, so my A6 is good for low and I scoop him taking my stack up to over 4 buyins. Good times, nice game.
The texas games went pretty decent. At one table I was treading water the whole time, but at the others I made some progress. The only really big hanbd I played was this:
I've got
[Ks] in the CO and open limp. 99% of the time I will of course raise here, but a new player had just joined a lap ago who posted UTG and raised it, and generally seemed happy to raise preflop. It felt like the table chemistry was changing towards more aggressiveness and I figured I would have a decent chance to get in a limp/re-raise here. Button limps along and then SB raises to 8sek. The new guy that seemed loose/aggressive cold calls in the BB and I make a big re-raise to 38. Button decides to get the hell out but both blinds call so we're 3-way to the flop with me in position and a pot of 60bb already. Obviously I won't be folding many flops, or rather, any not containing an Ace. I started with only 168 so more than 20% of my stack is in already.
Flop comes 678 with two hearts and they both check to me. First of all, this isn't a "great" flop for me but I figure to be ahead. But if I get played with and I am ahead, opponents will usually have plenty of outs. Some matchups from hands liable to give me action but where I am still ahead or flipping:
[8h] = 50/50
[Th] = 58/42 (43s is pretty much the same)
[9d] = 64/36 (55 is pretty much the same)
[Ts] = 76/24
I'm also behind to some powerful draws like A5s and A9s, where I am only 40% to win. Of course I am also behind to sets and two-pairs, but my
gives me a tad more equity (31/69 against 87) and having invested close to a quarter of my stack preflop I've pretty much ensured that seen to the whole hand, I can't pretty much make a -EV decision barring an Ace on the flop since no hand that doesn't contain an Ace has enough equity against me preflop.
So I bet just below half my stack, putting in 64 into the 120 pot. Some may argue that I am giving good odds to flush or straight draws but I don't expect them to fold a flushdraw or OESD any way, and I might as well tru to induce a raise or loose call since I will be going all the way anyway and their implied odds are minimal.
SB folds but the newcomer in BB pushes, I of course call. Turn is a
and river is a
, I'm a bit worried about a 5 or two-pair hand but he flips over
[8h] and I was in excellent shape on the flop (almost 80/20) and he failed to draw out. Obviously playing A8o to a raise and re-raise is borderline retarded, but I'll take his money.
Only played for an hour, but made almost 5 buyins, making it close to $200/hr which sure as hell aint bad playing these levels. Actually, I'll take that playing my normal levels too.